Skin and underlying tissues typically have a flat and toned appearance in youth. Over time, age-related loss of elasticity and other factors, such as heredity, sun damage, obesity, and normal wear and tear, may contribute to changes in the skin, muscle, fat, and support system which may result in the appearance of baggy and/or wrinkled skin. Many turn to cosmetic surgery to reduce the signs of aging, particularly in the facial region. For example, lower eyelid “bags”, or blepharaochalasis, is a very common condition seen with normal aging, fatigue, allergies, swelling, obesity, etc. Eyelid skin doesn't have fat of its own, but instead the fat located in the eyelid area is from orbital fat. The facial eyelid muscles and skin hold this orbital fat in place resulting in a youthful line starting from the eyelashes to the cheek. With time, under eye bags may result from the fat putting pressure on lax muscle, ligament, and skin wall. Baggy eyelids may also result from an extra amount of orbital fat.
Eyelid fat may not be removed by liposuction since the tissues surrounding the eyes are too delicate. However, there are other surgical options (both internal and external surgical procedures), such as blepharoplasty, which involves removing lower eyelid fat through an incision on the back of the eyelid. However skin resurfacing with a chemical peel or carbon dioxide laser may also be performed to remove wrinkles and/or excess skin.
Reduction of tissue regions such as eyelid fat may be accomplished by the application of ablation instruments such as lasers. However, conventional laser instruments because of their size typically require the introduction of the instrument through surgical incisions made through the skin to obtain access to the tissue regions to be ablated. Thus, although laser instrumentation may be effective in ablating subcutaneous tissue regions, access to these tissue regions may nonetheless require surgical incisions along with the accompanying bleeding and pain associated with such procedures.
In addition to baggy lower eyelids, the upper eyelid may also have a baggy or droopy appearance. Upper eye bags may also be caused by orbital fat, extra skin (dermochalasis), brow ptosis, or any combination. Most commonly, dermatochalasis presents a cosmetic concern only, with patients complaining of droopy eyelids. However, some patients may complain of true functional difficulties, such as obstruction of the superior visual field. Belpharoplasty or a brow lift may be performed to reduce upper eyelid bulges and/or wrinkles.
Another area of facial aging may be seen in the mouth and chin area. Below the mouth, the chin may become prominent as the area surrounding the chin shows volume depletion. This, combined with the gravitational movement of the cheek's fat pad (malar fat pad), creates unattractive jowls.
The neck may also be an area where the signs of aging are apparent. Weakened or loose neck muscles may result in the appearance of neck bands, which is sometimes commonly referred to as a “turkey wattle.” Platysmaplasty is a common surgical technique used to correct sagging skin in the neck area. Incisions under the chin and/or behind the ears are made to access the platysma (neck muscle) and manipulate it accordingly. Sometimes, the muscle may even be removed. An endoscope may be used during surgery which may result in a smaller incision.
In order to have a more youthful appearance many times people turn to cosmetic surgery to correct the sagging aspects of the face. Surgery may sometimes need to be repeated to obtain the desired look which may lead to excess scarring. There are other non-surgical procedures for correcting wrinkles such as laser resurfacing, deep acid peels and Botox injections. As many are all aware, these aggressive procedures carry risks. Also, they can often have long recovery times and leave a person with an unnatural appearance. Therefore, there is a need for a less invasive procedure which is more precise and has a shorter recovery time.